ABSTRACT
The global emergence of carbapenemases led to the need of developing new methods for their rapid detection. The aim of this study was to evaluate the performance of the rapid tests for carbapenemase-producing and non-producing Enterobacteriaceae. Carbapenem non-susceptible Enterobacteriaceae from a surveillance study submitted to a multiplex real time PCR for carbapenemase detection were included in this study. The isolates were subjected to the rapid phenotypic tests Carba NP, Blue-Carba and Carbapenem Inactivation Method (CIM). A total of 83 carbapenemase-producing (43) and non-producing (40) isolates were included in the study. The sensitivity/specificity were 62.7%/97.5%, 95.3%/100%, and 74.4%/97.5% for Carba NP, Blue-Carba and CIM, respectively. Both Carba NP and Blue-Carba presented their final results after 75 min of incubation; the final results for CIM were obtained only after 8 h. Failure to detect OXA-370 carbapenemase was the main problem for Carba NP and CIM assays. As the Blue-Carba presented the highest sensitivity, it can be considered the best screening test. Conversely, CIM might be the easiest to perform, as it does not require special reagents. The early detection of carbapenemases aids to establish infection control measures and prevent carbapenemases to spread reducing the risk of healthcare associated infections and therapeutic failure.
Keywords:
Carbapenemases; Rapid tests; Carba NP; Blue-Carba; CIM
Introduction
Nowadays carbapenem resistance among Enterobacteriaceae is a major concern. These bacteria become resistant to this antibiotic class mainly due to three mechanisms, either isolated or combined: efflux pumps; permeability loss; and carbapenemase production.11 Paterson DL. Resistance in gram-negative bacteria: Enterobacteriaceae. Am J Med. 2006;119:S20-S28 [discussion S62–S70]. The latter represents a growing concern, since these enzymes hydrolyze not only carbapenems but also other β-lactams and their dissemination is usually plasmid-mediated.22 Nordmann P, Naas T, Poirel L. Global spread of Carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae. Emerg Infect Dis. 2011;17:1791-1798.
Carbapenemases can be classified as class A, B or D β-lactamases,33 Ambler RP. The structure of beta-lactamases. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci. 1980;289:321-331. based on their molecular structure. In Brazil, different carbapenemase classes have emerged over the years but the Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase (KPC) is already considered endemic.22 Nordmann P, Naas T, Poirel L. Global spread of Carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae. Emerg Infect Dis. 2011;17:1791-1798. We have also observed the spread of the New Delhi Metallo-β-lactamase (NDM) in recent years44 Rozales FP, Ribeiro VB, Magagnin CM, Pagano M, Lutz L, Falci DR, et al. Emergence of NDM-1-producing Enterobacteriaceae in Porto Alegre, Brazil. Int J Infect Dis. 2014;25:79-81.,55 Magagnin CM, Rozales FP, Antochevis L, Nunes LS, Martins AS, Barth AL, et al. Dissemination of bla (OXA-370) gene among several Enterobacteriaceae species in Brazil. Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis. 2017 [Epub ahead of print]. and the emergence of OXA-370 in some regions.55 Magagnin CM, Rozales FP, Antochevis L, Nunes LS, Martins AS, Barth AL, et al. Dissemination of bla (OXA-370) gene among several Enterobacteriaceae species in Brazil. Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis. 2017 [Epub ahead of print]. Moreover, scattered reports of GES-5 and IMP-1 have been described over the country.66 Picao RC, Santos AF, Nicoletti AG, Furtado GH, Gales AC. Detection of GES-5-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae in Brazil. J Antimicrob Chemother. 2010;65:796-797.,77 Lincopan N, McCulloch JA, Reinert C, Cassettari VC, Gales AC, Mamizuka EM. First isolation of metallo-beta-lactamase-producing multiresistant Klebsiella pneumoniae from a patient in Brazil. J Clin Microbiol. 2005;43:516-519.
The global emergence of carbapenemases brought to light the need of developing new methods for its rapid detection. The enzymatic activity of carbapenemases is explored as an alternative for their detection in some recent studies. This activity might be detected by biochemical assays such as Carba NP and Blue-Carba methods,88 Nordmann P, Poirel L, Dortet L. Rapid detection of carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae. Emerg Infect Dis. 2012;18:1503-1507.,99 Pires J, Novais A, Peixe L. Blue-carba, an easy biochemical test for detection of diverse carbapenemase producers directly from bacterial cultures. J Clin Microbiol. 2013;51:4281-4283. in which the hydrolysis of the β-lactam ring is visualized by the colour change of a pH indicator, or using mass spectroscopy in which the absence of the carbapenem molecular ion is observed in the presence of a carbapenemase-producing bacteria.1010 Carvalhaes CG, Cayo R, Visconde MF, Barone T, Frigatto EA, Okamoto D, et al. Detection of carbapenemase activity directly from blood culture vials using MALDI-TOF MS: a quick answer for the right decision. J Antimicrob Chemother. 2014;69:2132-2136.,1111 Lasserre C, De Saint Martin L, Cuzon G, Bogaerts P, Lamar E, Glupczynski Y, et al. Efficient detection of carbapenemase activity in Enterobacteriaceae by matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry in less than 30 minutes. J Clin Microbiol. 2015;53:2163-2171. Van der Zwaluw et al. also proposed a methodology (the Carbapenem Inactivation Method – CIM) in which a carbapenem-susceptible E. coli strain is able to grow near a meropenem disk after its incubation with a carbapenemase-producing strain.1212 van der Zwaluw K, de Haan A, Pluister GN, Bootsma HJ, de Neeling AJ, Schouls LM. The carbapenem inactivation method (CIM), a simple and low-cost alternative for the Carba NP test to assess phenotypic carbapenemase activity in gram-negative rods. PLoS ONE. 2015;10:e0123690. Recently, the Clinical & Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) proposed the use of Carba NP and the CIM assays as screening methods for carbapenemase detection.1313 Clinical & Laboratory Standards Institute – CLSI. Performance Standards of Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing; 27th Informational Supplement; M100-S27. Wayne, PA: Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute; 2017.
The aim of this study was to evaluate the performance of the rapid tests Carba NP, Blue-Carba and CIM against carbapenemase-producing and -non-producing Enterobacteriaceae.
Material and methods
Bacterial isolates
Carbapenem non-susceptible Enterobacteriaceae, from a previous surveillance study, were identified by biochemical characterization and, when necessary, confirmed using VITEK2 system (BioMérieux, France). Isolates resistant to, at least, imipenem and/or meropenem were selected for this study.
Genotypic detection of carbapenemases
Carbapenemase genes were detected by a multiplex real-time PCR with specific primers for the bla KPC, bla GES, bla IMP, bla NDM, bla VIM and bla OXA-48-like.1414 Monteiro J, Widen RH, Pignatari AC, Kubasek C, Silbert S. Rapid detection of carbapenemase genes by multiplex real-time PCR. J Antimicrob Chemother. 2012;67:906-909. PCR products of isolates positive for bla GES and bla OXA-48-like were purified using the ExoStar kit (GE Healthcare) and sequenced using a BigDye Terminator kit (version 3.1) and an ABI 3500 Genetic Analyzer (Applied Biosystems).
Phenotypic detection of carbapenemases
Carba NP
The carbapenemase detection by Carba NP was performed and interpreted as previously described by Nordmann et al.88 Nordmann P, Poirel L, Dortet L. Rapid detection of carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae. Emerg Infect Dis. 2012;18:1503-1507. Briefly, overnight cultured colonies grown in Mueller Hinton agar were submitted to extraction with B-PERII (Bacterial Protein Extraction Reagent, Thermo Scientific Pierce, Rockford, USA) and incubated for 2 h in a solution containing phenol-red and imipenem. The bacterial extract was also incubated in a phenol-red solution without antibiotic. The result was considered positive when the solution containing imipenem became orange or yellow. The result was not validated if the solution without antibiotic presented a colour change more expressive than the solution containing imipenem. A known KPC-2 producer was used as positive control, and E. coli ATCC 25922 was tested as negative control.
Blue-Carba
Carbapenemase detection by Blue-Carba was performed and interpreted as previously described by Pires et al.99 Pires J, Novais A, Peixe L. Blue-carba, an easy biochemical test for detection of diverse carbapenemase producers directly from bacterial cultures. J Clin Microbiol. 2013;51:4281-4283. Briefly, overnight cultured colonies grown in Mueller Hinton agar were incubated for 2 h in a solution containing bromothymol blue and imipenem. The bacterial colonies were also incubated in a bromothymol blue solution without antibiotic. The result was considered positive when the solution containing imipenem became green or yellow, and its color was different from the one observed in the negative control. The result was not validated if the solution without antibiotic presented the same or stronger colour change as the solution containing imipenem. A known KPC-2 producer was utilized as positive control, and a test tube containing only bacteria inoculum and Blue-Carba solution was used as negative control for each isolate tested.
Carbapenemase inhibition method (CIM)
The CIM was performed as previously described by van der Zwaluw et al.1212 van der Zwaluw K, de Haan A, Pluister GN, Bootsma HJ, de Neeling AJ, Schouls LM. The carbapenem inactivation method (CIM), a simple and low-cost alternative for the Carba NP test to assess phenotypic carbapenemase activity in gram-negative rods. PLoS ONE. 2015;10:e0123690. Briefly, overnight cultured colonies were incubated for 2 h with a meropenem disk in 400 µL of water, with zinc sulfate supplementation for metallo-beta-lactamase-producing isolates. After the incubation, the disk was placed on a Mueller-Hinton agar plate previously inoculated with a susceptible E. coli (ATCC 25922) and incubated at 35 ºC up to the growth of the strain (around 6 h). The result was considered positive when the E. coli presented an inhibition zone ≤16 mm around the meropenem disk, according to the CLSI interpretation criteria.1313 Clinical & Laboratory Standards Institute – CLSI. Performance Standards of Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing; 27th Informational Supplement; M100-S27. Wayne, PA: Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute; 2017. A known KPC-2 producer was utilized as positive control, and E. coli ATCC 25922 was tested as negative control.
Results
A total of 83 carbapenem-non-susceptible Enterobacteriaceae isolates were selected for this study: 12 KPC, 13 NDM, 12 OXA-370, four GES-5, and two IMP producers, as well as 40 carbapenemase non-producers. All isolates were submitted to the rapid tests Carba NP, Blue-Carba and CIM. The results for carbapenemase-producing isolates, as well as the two carbapenemase-non-producing isolates with at least one false positive result, are presented in Table 1. The 38 carbapenemase-non-producing isolates that were not included in the table presented negative results for all tests performed. The Carba NP test presented a sensitivity of 62.7% and a specificity of 97.5%. The vast majority of isolates with positive results presented a clear color change within 15 min of incubation; only one isolate required the maximum time of 75 min to become positive (Table 2). The sensitivity of Blue-Carba was 95.3% and its specificity was 100%. As observed in Carba NP, most isolates with positive results in the Blue-Carba presented the final result within 15 min of incubation; only one isolate required the maximum time of 75 min to become positive (Table 2). The Carbapenemase Inactivation Method presented a sensitivity of 74.4% and specificity of 97.5%. The CIM required a standard time of at least 480 min between the beginning and the final results of the test (Table 2).
Results of rapid tests Carba NP, Blue-Carba and CIM for carbapenemase-producing and non-producing Enterobacteriaceae.
Summary of the characteristics of the rapid tests for carbapenemase detection Carba NP, Blue-Carba and CIM.
Discussion
Lately a variety of novel methods for carbapenemase detection have been proposed.99 Pires J, Novais A, Peixe L. Blue-carba, an easy biochemical test for detection of diverse carbapenemase producers directly from bacterial cultures. J Clin Microbiol. 2013;51:4281-4283.,1212 van der Zwaluw K, de Haan A, Pluister GN, Bootsma HJ, de Neeling AJ, Schouls LM. The carbapenem inactivation method (CIM), a simple and low-cost alternative for the Carba NP test to assess phenotypic carbapenemase activity in gram-negative rods. PLoS ONE. 2015;10:e0123690.,1515 Dortet L, Poirel L, Nordmann P. Rapid identification of carbapenemase types in Enterobacteriaceae and Pseudomonas spp. by using a biochemical test. Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 2012;56:6437-6440.–1717 Saito R, Koyano S, Dorin M, Higurashi Y, Misawa Y, Nagano N, et al. Evaluation of a simple phenotypic method for the detection of carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae. J Microbiol Methods. 2015;108:45-48. All methods explore the carbapenem-hydrolysing activity of the β-lactamases and are supposed to present high sensitivity and specificity within a short period of time, with results interpretable in a single day of work. In this study, we evaluated the rapid tests Carba NP, Blue-Carba and CIM.
Carba NP presented high specificity, but its sensitivity was the lowest among the other methodologies. The reduced sensitivity of Carba NP was mostly due to OXA-370 isolates. This finding was also reported in other studies that evaluated the performance of Carba NP with OXA-48-producing isolates.1818 Dortet L, Brechard L, Poirel L, Nordmann P. Rapid detection of carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae from blood cultures. Clin Microbiol Infect. 2014;20:340-344.,1919 Huang TD, Berhin C, Bogaerts P, Glupczynski Y. Comparative evaluation of two chromogenic tests for rapid detection of carbapenemase in Enterobacteriaceae and in Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates. J Clin Microbiol. 2014;52:3060-3063. The Carba NP method proved to be a very fast methodology as most positive results were observed in 15 min. In fact, although the bacterial extract and the carbapenem were incubated for 120 min, no significant colour change was observed after 75 min, which was considered the final time results for this test.
The Blue-Carba methodology presented the highest sensitivity and specificity among the three methodologies. Only one OXA-370 positive isolate and one GES positive isolate were not detected by Blue-Carba. Pasteran et al. observed very similar results of sensitivity and specificity for this assay when they tested isolates from very diverse locations in Latin America.2121 Pasteran F, Veliz O, Ceriana P, Lucero C, Rapoport M, Albornoz E, et al. Evaluation of the blue-carba test for rapid detection of carbapenemases in gram-negative bacilli. J Clin Microbiol. 2015;53:1996-1998. As found in the Carba NP test, most isolates presented positive results in 15 min and the final result for Blue-Carba was observed after 75 min of incubation.
Regarding CIM, we have modified the original protocol of van der Zwaluw et al.1212 van der Zwaluw K, de Haan A, Pluister GN, Bootsma HJ, de Neeling AJ, Schouls LM. The carbapenem inactivation method (CIM), a simple and low-cost alternative for the Carba NP test to assess phenotypic carbapenemase activity in gram-negative rods. PLoS ONE. 2015;10:e0123690. and added zinc sulphate in the suspension of bacteria with the meropenem disk to achieve a higher sensitivity of the method regarding the detection of metallo-beta-lactamase. As observed with Carba NP, a lower sensitivity was obtained among the OXA-370 producers. The major setback of this methodology, compared to the other two evaluated in this study, is the time needed for the final result, considering that at least 6 h are necessary for a proper growth of the carbapenem-susceptible E. coli, which is mandatory for the test interpretation. On the other hand, the CIM seems to be the simplest test, considering that no special reagents are necessary for its execution.
The difficulty for detection of isolates harboring OXA-48-like is probably related to the least expressive hydrolytic capacity of class D carbapenemases.2020 Evans BA, Amyes SG. OXA beta-lactamases. Clin Microbiol Rev. 2014;27:241-263. Also, it is still not clear if OXA-370 (a variant of OXA-48) is a true carbapenemase, considering that low carbapenem MIC values are usually observed in clinical samples presenting this enzyme. In this matter, the detection of imipenem hydrolysis, in which the tests are based, is even harder. If OXA-370 producing isolates were not included in this study, the sensitivity for CarbaNP test would be of 83.8% and of 96.7% for CIM. However, the OXA-370 seems to be the variant of OXA-48 that is prevalent in Brazil and, therefore, it is important that the rapid tests be evaluated against these isolates.
Noteworthy, minimal color changes, yielded by lower carbapenem hydrolysis levels, were easier to observe using the Blue-Carba test, considering that blue-green changes are easier to observe, compared to red-orange ones. In some cases, especially regarding OXA-370- and GES-5-producing isolates, the interpretation of tests results were challenging, and a second opinion was requested. Thus, the correct interpretation relies on capacitated technicians.
The global spread of carbapenemases highlights the importance of their rapid detection. Considering that carbapenems are the last resort for serious Enterobacteriaceae infections, controlling the dissemination of the mechanisms of resistance to these antibiotics is mandatory.2222 Walsh TR. Emerging carbapenemases: a global perspective. Int J Antimicrob Agents. 2010;36(Suppl 3):S8-S14. Although PCR is considered the gold standard for carbapenemase detection,1616 Martino MD, Koga PC, Pasternak J, Doi AM, Ciola CS, da Silva CB, et al. Evaluation of a new rapid test for carbapenemase detection in carbapenem resistant Enterobacteriaceae. J Microbiol Methods. 2015;115:20-21. most laboratories are not able to perform this methodology due to costs and the special equipment required. The methodologies evaluated in this study provide reliable results in a single workday. The carbapenemase detection might also be done directly from clinical samples, as described by Dortet et al.1818 Dortet L, Brechard L, Poirel L, Nordmann P. Rapid detection of carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae from blood cultures. Clin Microbiol Infect. 2014;20:340-344.
In summary, the Blue-Carba presented the highest sensitivity and, therefore, can be considered the best test to be used as a screening phenotypic methodology, considering that the misdetection of carbapenemase producers has a greater impact for clinicians than a false positive result, and differences observed between sensitivity values are much greater than the differences observed in specificity. On the other hand, CIM might be the easiest test to perform, as it does not require any special reagent and it is easier to be interpreted. The early detection of carbapenemases helps to establish infection control measures and may prevent carbapenemases to spread reducing the risk of healthcare associated infections and therapeutic failure.
REFERENCES
-
1Paterson DL. Resistance in gram-negative bacteria: Enterobacteriaceae Am J Med 2006;119:S20-S28 [discussion S62–S70].
-
2Nordmann P, Naas T, Poirel L. Global spread of Carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae Emerg Infect Dis 2011;17:1791-1798.
-
3Ambler RP. The structure of beta-lactamases. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 1980;289:321-331.
-
4Rozales FP, Ribeiro VB, Magagnin CM, Pagano M, Lutz L, Falci DR, et al. Emergence of NDM-1-producing Enterobacteriaceae in Porto Alegre, Brazil. Int J Infect Dis 2014;25:79-81.
-
5Magagnin CM, Rozales FP, Antochevis L, Nunes LS, Martins AS, Barth AL, et al. Dissemination of bla (OXA-370) gene among several Enterobacteriaceae species in Brazil. Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis 2017 [Epub ahead of print].
-
6Picao RC, Santos AF, Nicoletti AG, Furtado GH, Gales AC. Detection of GES-5-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae in Brazil. J Antimicrob Chemother 2010;65:796-797.
-
7Lincopan N, McCulloch JA, Reinert C, Cassettari VC, Gales AC, Mamizuka EM. First isolation of metallo-beta-lactamase-producing multiresistant Klebsiella pneumoniae from a patient in Brazil. J Clin Microbiol 2005;43:516-519.
-
8Nordmann P, Poirel L, Dortet L. Rapid detection of carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae Emerg Infect Dis 2012;18:1503-1507.
-
9Pires J, Novais A, Peixe L. Blue-carba, an easy biochemical test for detection of diverse carbapenemase producers directly from bacterial cultures. J Clin Microbiol 2013;51:4281-4283.
-
10Carvalhaes CG, Cayo R, Visconde MF, Barone T, Frigatto EA, Okamoto D, et al. Detection of carbapenemase activity directly from blood culture vials using MALDI-TOF MS: a quick answer for the right decision. J Antimicrob Chemother 2014;69:2132-2136.
-
11Lasserre C, De Saint Martin L, Cuzon G, Bogaerts P, Lamar E, Glupczynski Y, et al. Efficient detection of carbapenemase activity in Enterobacteriaceae by matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry in less than 30 minutes. J Clin Microbiol 2015;53:2163-2171.
-
12van der Zwaluw K, de Haan A, Pluister GN, Bootsma HJ, de Neeling AJ, Schouls LM. The carbapenem inactivation method (CIM), a simple and low-cost alternative for the Carba NP test to assess phenotypic carbapenemase activity in gram-negative rods. PLoS ONE 2015;10:e0123690.
-
13Clinical & Laboratory Standards Institute – CLSI. Performance Standards of Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing; 27th Informational Supplement; M100-S27. Wayne, PA: Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute; 2017.
-
14Monteiro J, Widen RH, Pignatari AC, Kubasek C, Silbert S. Rapid detection of carbapenemase genes by multiplex real-time PCR. J Antimicrob Chemother 2012;67:906-909.
-
15Dortet L, Poirel L, Nordmann P. Rapid identification of carbapenemase types in Enterobacteriaceae and Pseudomonas spp. by using a biochemical test. Antimicrob Agents Chemother 2012;56:6437-6440.
-
16Martino MD, Koga PC, Pasternak J, Doi AM, Ciola CS, da Silva CB, et al. Evaluation of a new rapid test for carbapenemase detection in carbapenem resistant Enterobacteriaceae J Microbiol Methods 2015;115:20-21.
-
17Saito R, Koyano S, Dorin M, Higurashi Y, Misawa Y, Nagano N, et al. Evaluation of a simple phenotypic method for the detection of carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae J Microbiol Methods 2015;108:45-48.
-
18Dortet L, Brechard L, Poirel L, Nordmann P. Rapid detection of carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae from blood cultures. Clin Microbiol Infect 2014;20:340-344.
-
19Huang TD, Berhin C, Bogaerts P, Glupczynski Y. Comparative evaluation of two chromogenic tests for rapid detection of carbapenemase in Enterobacteriaceae and in Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates. J Clin Microbiol 2014;52:3060-3063.
-
20Evans BA, Amyes SG. OXA beta-lactamases. Clin Microbiol Rev 2014;27:241-263.
-
21Pasteran F, Veliz O, Ceriana P, Lucero C, Rapoport M, Albornoz E, et al. Evaluation of the blue-carba test for rapid detection of carbapenemases in gram-negative bacilli. J Clin Microbiol 2015;53:1996-1998.
-
22Walsh TR. Emerging carbapenemases: a global perspective. Int J Antimicrob Agents 2010;36(Suppl 3):S8-S14.
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Publication Dates
-
Publication in this collection
Oct-Dec 2018
History
-
Received
9 Apr 2017 -
Accepted
7 July 2018 -
Published
16 Aug 2018